Leaning against the cliff wall, Noah surveyed the battlefield. It was the dead of night, and the enthralled horde persisted in its relentless assault. Only one of the cave dwellers and three of the precious four-armed devils had survived. Steve, Claws, and Harold were still fighting, though all three had sustained damage, their skeletal forms shimmering green in the darkness where they were struck.

Only Dozer remained unscathed, his sheer might combined with the Dark Steel armor, making him an unyielding juggernaut.

'He was definitely worth the cave dwellers and devils I sacrificed for him.'

Noah himself was a mess. Physically, he had the stamina to keep fighting, thanks to the essence he continuously absorbed from the slain monsters. Mentally, however, he was tapped out. Between his duel with Silas and battling the horde, Noah had been fighting for over twelve hours. His clothes were torn to shreds, he was soaking wet and bloodied.

Had Noah known just how massive the horde was, he might have attempted to make a break for it, instead of trying to annihilate the enthralled monsters.

'What do they even want from me so much? Whatever, at least it stopped raining.'

The ground was now a treacherous mix of mud and blood, causing Noah to slip and tumble several times during the battle.

Since Noah and his minions were surrounded by heaps of dead monsters, he used them to funnel the thralls into killing zones led by Dozer, Steve, and Claws, all the while strategically raising dead thralls as the horde advanced, to further slow them down.

Whenever it appeared as though the horde would break through at a specific kill zone, Noah would personally join the fray to stabilize the front.

Now, it was a race to see what would run out first: the horde's numbers, or Noah's fortitude.

***

The grueling battle dragged on for several more hours until, miraculously, the stream of enthralled monsters appeared to begin dwindling somewhat.

It was then that the ground started to tremble, the remaining thralls unleashing an ear-piercing chorus of torturous shrieks.

'I take it that mommy's coming?' Silas snarled.

An entire patch of ground seemed to dislodge, surging upwards, catapulting rocks away and sending enthralled monsters flying.

Then – silence. The shaking stopped.

But only for a moment. With a roaring rumble, the dislodged rocky ground collapsed into the Hollowed Depths, taking the monsters with it, as a colossal shape emerged from the newly formed hole in the ground.

The horror was the size of a two-story building, yet somehow levitated slightly above the ground. It was flesh-colored with a brain-like texture. As far as Silas could tell, the entire monster was simply a massive head. No eyes, no ears, only a mouth bristling with rows of needle-shaped teeth and slithering tentacles emerging from its bottom half. Far too many tentacles. Though the creature seemed to have recently suffered horrific burns, scorched across its body.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

In recent years, several expeditions had set out to locate the source of the thrall infestation before it could spread to a magnitude threatening Arcturus City.

'All those powerful experts, and the dumbass here ends up luring the overgrown critter?' Silas couldn't help but be amused. 'I guess it can sense the potential in the kid, along with my power, and wants to enthrall us real bad.'

The terror slithered its tentacles forward, coiling them around several enthralled monsters, who offered no resistance. Retracting the tentacles, it lobbed the thralls into its gaping maw, ravenously devouring them one by one.

'That is an awful idea...' Silas observed as Noah was already moving to confront the terror.

"Kid, listen to me, you need to run-"

"Oh, why don't you go eat a duck."

'I hate how much I've grown to enjoy the stupid way the kid swears.' Silas half-chuckled, half-grumbled. 'Seriously though, I get I'm on his shit list right now, but the kid's about to get himself enthralled.'

Dozer charged directly at the hulking terror, catching its attention. Furious at the challenge, the colossal monster released a horribly high-pitched shriek. Half-chewed chunks of monsters shot out from its mouth, along with dozens of the pink, fleshy worms that infest the enthralled victims.

Positioning his tower shield in front of him, Dozer continued charging as monster bits and parasitic worms smashed and splattered against the Dark Steel. However, as the terror kept shrieking, the shockwave made it increasingly difficult for the armored giant to advance. Digging his heels into the mud, Dozer slowed to a crawl, and as the force of the shriek intensified, the giant was hurled back, slamming into the cliff wall.

"Kid, I appreciate the diversion, but you're still gonna lose."

Ignoring Silas, Noah and Claws lunged at the terror from both sides—only to be simultaneously swatted by its tendrils. Crashing onto his back, Noah was dragged through the mud before grinding to a halt, coughing and spitting blood, and now earning the undivided attention of the terror.

'...Is this fate?'

Silas watched as the brain-like monster hovered toward Noah. The gruff man was not prone to emotion, yet, while still somewhat conflicted, Silas felt a wave of relief wash over him.

'Left to its own devices, that brainiac critter would eventually become a calamity, akin to the existences that roamed the world during the Great Fall, destroying entire cities and armies in their wake. The lives I'll save now will surely balance out those that will be lost in the future...'

Silas knew he was bargaining, but it didn't matter. The choice was out of his hands. Failing to intervene now would lead to the enthrallment of both Noah and himself, and his mission would still fail.

All that was left now was to decide his parting words to Noah. Silas considered apologizing, but what would that achieve? Would it erase the hell he had put Noah through? No, so it would be worthless. Perhaps warning him? No, that would only get Noah into even more trouble.

'Oh well, here goes nothing!'

***

Noah raised his head just high enough to see the terror almost upon him. He tried to get up but only ended up spewing more blood and collapsing back into the mud.

'The heck do I do now...?' He could feel his consciousness slipping away. 'I tried... I really did.'

One of the terror's tentacles began slithering toward Noah, but he was powerless to do anything at this point.

"Noah." Silas' voice echoed in Noah's mind. "You're a good one. Don't give up, OK? Sleep it off, and you'll be back home soon."

'The heck he's giving me a pep talk now...?' Noah wanted to tell Silas to shut his mouth, but no words came out.

Suddenly, something stirred within Noah's chest, and a shimmering green orb emerged from his body. He immediately felt... alone, after a very long time.

'Silas...?'

The green orb headed directly towards the terror, vanishing into its gargantuan body. At first, nothing happened. Then, after a brief pause, an explosion of pure essence erupted from within the monster, radiant green light rippling and shining through its maw. And after that, there was nothing. Noah could no longer feel the overwhelming essence of the terror, nor that of Silas' core.

The terror tittered and collapsed with a mighty thud onto the muddy ground—lifeless. A moment later, all the surviving enthralled monsters fell, gaining the sweet release of death after their tormentor's demise.

The last thought running through Noah's mind as he faded out of consciousness was—'He's gone...'